SOLUTION
There are many things you can do in the lawn and in the garden that will reduce pollution in the Sound. However, you may start with a simple question...Why do you need it?

Manicured yards are very high-maintenance items. Keeping your lawn weed-free and super-green is a fight against nature. Consider reducing your effort, cost, and your impact on the Sound. Many people assume that they must have the standard run of the mill lawn, but many landscape architects and designers can give you prudent and attractive alternatives to the basic extremely green lawn.

Size:
Even reducing the size of your lawn can have a terrific effect on keeping the Sound healthy. Perhaps you can reduce you lawn area and still maintain the same lawn-based activities. Some questions you should consider are:

– What do you like about your lawn?
– How much do you and your family actually use your lawn?
– Do you use the neighborhood park more often?

Aesthetics
Do you have a large lawn because you like the look and feel of an open expanse? Many people are unaware that you can maintain that same openness by replacing all or part of your lawn with another lush, green groundcover or even a meadow of wildflowers, both of which will be virtually maintenance-free. This transformation can provide you with unbelievable display of foliage and blooms that change weekly. If you take this approach, and replace the sod with native wildflowers, grasses and ground covers, your lawn will need only an annual mowing. In addition, once it's established, a “lawn full of native plants almost never needs watering, which will make your lawn the best-looking in your neighborhood when drought turns all the other yards brown. Returning the grassy area of your yard to a meadow of indigenous species will also attract birds, butterflies, and beneficial insects to your yard.”

Weeds and Pests
If you have decided that you prefer a yard full of the typical grass species, consider why you are killing weeds. Is it for the health of the grass? If so, consider organic methods of removal. Is it for appearance? Some of the most beautiful lawns are loaded with weeds; just take a look at the fields at your school or the lawn of a park. Besides did you know that:

– White clover, a common lawn “weed”, that can save you a lot of work. The leaves shade the ground, which help keep the soil moist. And, like beans, the plant is a legume, it can take nitrogen from the air and use it for growth. (This is a trick that most plants cannot perform.) This process then adds nitrogen to the soil that your grass can use, saving you the trouble of adding fertilizer.
– Dandelions have attractive flowers and the leaves are edible and very nutritious.

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